I've seen a fair amount of Bluey NRL apprenticeship talk in several of the threads of late as we've all been trying to dissect this season. I can't accept it. The basics of the game are common no matter where you're from. It's true in club level, ESL, NRL, International. The degree of experience and resource and professionalism will be somewhat different and the ability to commit the time to managing people and honing the skills of individual and team with the support that is found in an NRL club should be nearer the pointy end of the stick. The idea though that he needs so much time to adapt to NRL is far too soft. The ESL clubs (and certainly where Bluey had come from) spend an inordinate amount of money on running their teams, he's had a tonne of 'experience' within these structures.
I agree that the NRL is faster. I think he made a fundamental mistake if he opted for emphasising learning new plays to the detriment of fitness, but if he had some master plan that would struggle in the NRL environment he should have the coaching smarts to adapt, and the club should have arranged that he could observe or had it made clear just what to expect before he stepped into the NRL arena (which from what I understand they did).
Yes, we've also had a lot of injury disruption, but there are still too many things wrong with the basic structure of our play, and especially our defence to be explained away by player inexperience.
I'm also miffed that we've lost talent that has shone elsewhere, because we didn't seem to be able to manage the team, when others clearly can.
It should have become evident to a coach where we're at and what direction we need to take after 6 or 7 games. Sadly we seem to be sinking deeper and deeper into the mire as the season progresses.
I doubt that he will get axed any time soon, but I can see no light at the end of this tunnel. I'm dissappointed as I had thought he might have been the man at the beginning of the season, I was clearly too hopeful.
